Peter Brock-designed Shelby De Tomaso P70 to appear at Amelia Island

Carroll Shelby’s Cobras and Cooper-based King Cobras had proven competitive during the 1963 and ’64 USRRC seasons, but 1965 was shaping up to be an entirely new battle. To remain competitive in the series that would spawn the Can-Am Challenge in 1966, Shelby turned to designer Peter Brock to shape an all-new sports racer, partnering with Alejandro de Tomaso to design and build a new, lightweight 427-cu.in. (7.0-liter) V-8 engine. Though the effort was stillborn, one Shelby De Tomaso P70 did survive the chaos that ensued when Shelby suddenly terminated the project, and the stunning prototype will make an appearance at the 2016 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance.

Ford’s existing 427 V-8 had proven itself in NASCAR competition during the 1963 and ’64 seasons, but Shelby viewed it as a heavy and bulky engine, suboptimal for use in a sports racer. Thinking that a bored and stroked version of the lightweight 289 V-8, fitted with high-flow heads, would be a more suitable choice, Shelby turned to de Tomaso to request assistance with the tight-deadline project. In response, de Tomaso pitched the Texan on a new backbone chassis and transaxle setup he’d been developing, and a deal was struck to develop five P70 sports racers. Shelby would provide the design from Peter Brock (which already existed as a 1/4-scale clay model), and de Tomaso would build the engine, chassis and five turnkey racers in time for the 1965 racing season.

The project did not proceed smoothly. Unsatisfied with de Tomaso’s interpretation of Brock’s design, Shelby directed his employee to jump on a plane to Italy to sort things out, but failed to tell him about the rejection of the initial design. The relationship between Peter Brock and Alejandro de Tomaso got off to a rocky start, and as Peter explained to us, “This time Shelby sent me over to personally see that everything was built correctly — de Tomaso was ‘insulted’ that Shelby had sent someone to make sure he didn’t mess up again.”

Peter didn’t spend much time at the De Tomaso factory, working instead with Carrozzeria Fantuzzi, the Modena-based coachbuilder tasked with creating the bodies for the P70 sports racer. As he soon discovered, the Modenese approached the craft in a far different manner from the Americans, telling us,

Their methods of construction were totally different than those we use here in the USA and also in the U.K. They worked in wire form, not wooden bucks, with templates at each “station.” Fast, simple and far more illustrative of what will be built. Easy to change mid-build if it becomes evident that change is needed. Very practical.

Photo courtesy Peter Brock.

Work in Italy progressed steadily, at least on the body. Back at De Tomaso, development of the 7.0-liter V-8 fell behind schedule, although the company’s new cylinder heads were reportedly living up to their hype in testing. One day, with the first P70 just about ready for paint and a second chassis also in the final assembly stages, Peter received a phone call from Shelby, saying little more than, “Come on home.”

Concerned over missed deadlines from De Tomaso, and stretched thin working on the Ford GT40 project, Shelby pulled the plug on the P70 with no advanced warning to Alejandro de Tomaso. The Italian Argentine was, understandably, furious with the decision, but spun the misfortune to his advantage to promote De Tomaso’s acquisition of Ghia. Shortly after Peter’s departure, de Tomaso gathered the Italian press to see the “new Ghia design” in the Fantuzzi workshop. Later, the car would make an appearance at the 1965 Turin Auto Show, displayed as the “Ghia De Tomaso Sport 5000.”

The P70 had been designed for competition in North America, and was built to comply with SCCA regulations. Still intent on racing the car, primarily in Europe, de Tomaso had one completed chassis altered with functional doors and a taller windscreen to meet FIA regulations. Entered in three races, the Sport 5000 arrived at just one, the 1966 Grand Prix of Mugello, where the car failed to complete the first lap. Still, the P70 development effort paid off for De Tomaso, which used a variant of the P70 chassis to underpin the Mangusta (Italian for Mongoose, a not-so-subtle jab at Shelby and his Cobra) and the later Pantera.

Both the completed P70 and the Sport 5000 were long retained by De Tomaso, eventually falling into the same private Southern California collection. The Sport 5000 remains in unrestored condition, while the P70 was given a ground-up restoration following its purchase in 2008. Today, the car is powered by a 5.0-liter Gurney-Weslake V-8.

Peter Brock calls the P70 one of his favorite designs, saying,

…it expressed the freedom to innovate that was so typical of the Can-Am rules… there were none! Also, it was the first time I got to complete the adjustable rear wing concept, which I had planned for the Daytona Coupe. When I went to Italy to build the P70, there was no one to counter my wishes and the car got built exactly like I wanted. It’s still one of the last great pieces of hand-built Modenese automotive art.”

Just imagine what might have been if the car had run in the 1965 USRRC season, and, later, in the Can-Am Challenge.

The Shelby De Tomaso P70 will be displayed in class RC2, Race Cars from 1961 through 1967. The 2016 Amelia Island Concours d’Elegance will take place on March 11-13, at The Ritz-Carlton Amelia Island in Fernandina Beach, Florida. For information on the show, visit AmeliaConcours.org.

Gerald TOOLEsays:

January 15, 2016 10:50 am

raysays:

January 15, 2016 4:18 pm

……if I remember correctly, one of the first makers to openly boast about aerodynamic drag coefficient was Subaru with their sleek but (very) quirky 1985 XT coupe …..they quoted the number at .29….
…….don’t know which car eventually had the lowest number, but it’s unlikely we’ll see any new records from here on…….global “pedestrian impact” standards are mandating the blunt noses we see today….

Bob Connearneysays:

January 18, 2016 10:22 pm

According to an article in a current auto magazine (can’t remember which), Brock and crew built the first Cobra Daytona body, then sent a few chassis to Italy for replication. The Italians thought the slope of the roof was a an aesthetic error, so they altered the angle a few degrees. This cost the Cobras at least 10 mph on the Le Mans straight. I’m thinking Brock may have been lucky, but more probably had exceptional intuition for such things.

Gerald TOOLEsays:

January 15, 2016 10:25 am

Chris Mortonsays:

January 15, 2016 10:33 am

Interesting story, Kurt. While at Ford, my brother brought home one of the earliest Panteras to check it out. He called to me to come over and be a passenger, which I was happy to accept—although I really wanted to drive the thing. (My brother was too concerned that, as a 16-year-old, I might do something that would make Hank the Deuce none too happy.)

A few years earlier, brother took me to my first Can-Am at Road America, well before it became the “Bruce & Denny Show.” It wasn’t too difficult to fall in love with the curvature of the Lolas (never mind their aggressive side). It would have been very cool to have seen the P70 race.

Pete Brock, of course, will forever be immortalized by me as one of the top designers ever in sports car history.

Mikesays:

January 15, 2016 11:14 am

Kurt Ernstsays:

January 15, 2016 11:52 am

Mike, as far as I know there are just two. Remember that five chassis were in various stages of completion when Shelby pulled the plug, so it’s well within the realm of possibility that another escaped the crusher.

stuntflyrsays:

January 15, 2016 11:43 am

Guido36says:

January 15, 2016 12:05 pm

Many years ago I acquired one of the three all aluminium 305 ci de Tomaso engines which came from Colin Chapman at Lotus. I spoke with Pete Brock about it several years ago. The engine was based on the 289 but with an aluminum block, externsl oil pump, flat plane crank and shallow wet sump. The heads were very clearly a Harry Weslake design – very similar to the later Gurney Weslake heads but they were a Heron head with the combustion chambers being in the pistons – not the heads. My engine was on slide Lucas timed slide injection. I owned this engine for many years.

Chapman had intended to use the engine in the stillborn Lotus 46 CanAm car. One of these engines with 48 IDA Webers was shown in the prototype Mangusta backbone chassis. Alejandro and Chapman were friends and many de Tomaso designs borrowed from Colin Chapmans designs – the backbone chassis being one of them.

George Allegrezzasays:

January 15, 2016 12:41 pm

Jason Herringsays:

January 15, 2016 12:44 pm

Looks like a 1/24 scale Tamiya slot car body I bought a few years ago. Tamiya had done a bunch in the ’60s, and brought out the tooling for a new run a few years ago. For some reason, Tamiya never offered them in the United States–they were Japan market only. I met a hobby shop owner who had seen them somewhere, and he found a company in Japan that was willing to send several bodies (individually sealed in plastic bags, with cryptic ‘names’ for the cars. The Lotus 30, for example, was ‘L30’ and a Ferrari P4 was ‘F4’) to him.
Think the body I bought was labeled as an “S2”. The hobby store owner told me the car was a Shelby racer, but I haven’t yet researched which car it was…and now I know!!

Toivoksays:

January 15, 2016 12:54 pm

Nice article! Thanks again Kurt for the research and compilation of your articles!
Thank God for the Friday review blog; our ISP has been down since Sunday night and I was developing a nervous twitch from lack of Hemmings Daily! Now I can see what I missed all week!

Kurt Ernstsays:

January 15, 2016 1:23 pm

g blanesays:

January 15, 2016 5:31 pm

Not mentioned here, DeTomaso was so upset at Shelby for not paying him for his cars that DeTomaso took the P-70 chassis and built the Mangusta……..Mangusta meaning Cobra killer. Although it was anything but, it was just one more group of people burned by Shelby.

Another nationally missed point about Shelby was his unscrupulous business practices which caused him to flee to South Africa for 7 years.

Douglas Martinsays:

January 16, 2016 12:41 am

Norasays:

January 16, 2016 1:39 am

The story I heard was that Shelby was no the sponsor but the backer for his former employee. Designs were sent to DeT and a 1st car was built but was poorly executed (see Hotel Fini prototype) Brock flew out and a second car was built at Fantuzzi. Once this car was finished CS failed to meet his obligations and Brock returned to the US and brought his story and pics to R&T.
DeT did show this car and at the time called it DeTomaso Sport5000. Brock’s venture having no outcome the car was rebodied to meet new regulations and the front and rear sections were put on a shelf until 2004. The Shelby 289s supplied for eventual race cars were later instaled in early Mangustas. The second version of this car still exists today but a different motor is in it. Neither bodies were ever raced although some would likes us to believe they did. No period pictures or period documents exist to support that theory. DeT never threw anything out and at the bankruptcy sale in 2004 one car and 2 clips were sold and six months later there were 2 cars and a racing pedigree. Upon close examination it car be seen one has all new undercarriage and a later motor. There are as stated also 4 detomaso 5liter aluminium motors floating in collection that would have revolutionized racing had they been produced. I am happy Pete Brock and this beautiful design is once again being recognized

Norasays:

January 17, 2016 12:49 am

Not really. The Ghia originally offered it to ISO but MrRivolta had no use for a coupe. At that time it was only a concept car. Then it was shown at Turin under Ghia Sport5000 still as a buck. Orders came in and the chassis of the P70 and body were married to produce a car. Once production started then it was named Mangusta. Later Ford did try to promote it under the Shelby banner at the NY auto show.